Qatar in 2000

Qatar in 2000 continued to make major inroads into the international energy industry as the world’s fastest-growing exporter of natural gas. During visits to China, France, Germany, India, South Korea, Thailand, and the United Kingdom, Emir Sheikh Hamad ibn Khalifah ath-Thani concluded memorandums of understanding with the governments of each of those major energy-importing countries. (SeeBiographies.) Coupled to the assets imbedded in its prodigious and extraordinarily low-cost gas reserves, the agreements furthered Qatar’s potential, in partnership with some of the world’s leading corporations, to become the engine of regional economic integration in the Persian Gulf.

Qatar also played important roles in several high-profile OPEC summits that addressed the implications of spiraling international oil prices. At the summit in September, Qatar was a major force in enabling the members to reach agreement on a manageable price range for oil that would satisfy producers as well as consumers. The successful demarcation of the border between Qatar and Saudi Arabia was an achievement of major international significance.